Man With No Country
by Faline1
Summary: Continuation of For The Grace Of God. The AS Army pushes in to Jericho.


Title: Man With No Country

Author: Faline

Rating: PG for now

Summary: The saga continues. The AS pushes in to Jericho and the world seems to tilt on its head as the town finds itself in the middle of a violent and unfriendly siege.

The night was chilly. It was still the middle of March and that was to be expected. Sergeant Thea Sandoval left the relative warm buzz of the command center behind, pulling her collar up tight around her neck. The flak jacket she wore was a suitable brace against the cold, but she'd been raised in warm climates.

The colder north didn't always agree with her.

It had been mere minutes since the Major had left and her eyes had followed him out. He was a good man. Strong, resolute, handsome. She sighed, brushing a stray lock of her dark hair away from her face. She intended to get some food. But as always the sight of Major Beck sent her head in a tailspin.

Thea knew that a relationship with him would be out of the question. Since she'd joined his company she'd known about his wife. Had even heard him discuss the situation of his missing family with her direct CO. He was untouchable in that arena.

Even when they'd heard through the grapevine that Major Beck's wife and daughter were confirmed dead a few days ago, he was still off limits. Because of Heather Lisinsky.

Thea remembered when they'd brought Heather to Camp Hayward. The older woman had been unconscious already, sick with what would be known as the Hudson River Virus. It had sent the meds into a panic, trying to quell any infection from springing up in the personnel that hadn't been vaccinated.

Those who hadn't been were pretty limited to civilian contractors that weren't J and R. A strange sight to see at Hayward, but not unheard of.

The meds contained it, however, and Heather recovered. And had met the Major. Thea wasn't stupid enough to believe that's when it had started, but it couldn't have hurt. Heather was a firebrand when she was riled. The Major liked those types of personalities. He was fond of anyone who had a real spark.

Thea wound her way past the PE field and in to the row of tents reserved for the higher ranking officials. She'd made a friend with Captain Dunne, her direct CO. She wondered if the Captain would be in her tent and willing to talk.

The gun shot shocked her out of her revelry, not so much the noise of it but the suddenness. It was silent in the night and the shot had been muffled, probably with a silencer. She was quick on the reaction, drawing her sidearm and taking cover next to a tent.

She'd picked the right one as words drifted through the canvas. It was Colonel Hoffman! She listened intently, hearing a plan to go out to a trailer, whatever that meant. Another voice responded in the affirmative and there was some shuffling.

The tent flap was pushed aside, only a few feet away from where she hid. She backed up slowly, going around the far side of the tent as the humvee that'd been parked in the road was started up and drove away.

She held her position, waiting for any more movement coming from the inside or from the front. When she was sure that no one else was coming or going, Thea came to the front of the tent and looked around. The humvee had disappeared from sight.

Her location, which she'd managed to ignore, being so deep in thought, gave her a jolt. She was next to the Major's tent. This was where they'd placed Colonel Hoffman. She cracked the flap and took a quick look. There was no movement coming from inside.

Thea slipped in and almost tripped over a large object on the floor. She managed to keep her balance and knelt down to investigate.

Major Beck lay on his side on the floor. As she pushed him gently to his back the smell of blood assailed her scent and she recoiled. He was bleeding. Thea tore open his jacket, looking for the blood. There was nothing on his shirt but a low groan was forced from his lips at her touch.

She gulped, pushing away the frantic worry piercing her thoughts, and rolled him gently back to his side. There was a hole just below his shoulder on the right side. She stifled a gasp. "Major, can you hear me?"

Thea checked his pulse. It was thready and far too slow. She had to get help immediately.

She grabbed at the com on her belt, switching over to the channel reserved for COs and Emergencies. Her hand hit the send button and a torrent of panicky words flooded from her mouth.

.--. .- -. .. -.-.

Mac was speeding, a fact that bothered Heather. Her fingers dug in to the faded upholstery of the Jeep, knuckles whiter than before with every sharp turn her friend took too quickly.

Heather understood why Mac wanted her back to base safely and quickly, but she wouldn't have minded a longer drive.

It would have given her time to work through what had happened.

The Major had kissed her.

Heather raised her hand to her face, her fingers brushing lightly over her lips. She missed the amused glance that Mac sent her way, instead staring out at the trees passing from light to dark.

Edward Beck, she corrected herself. The name felt funny to say mentally; he had always been Major Beck. Edward. It wasn't a bad name.

And the man with the not bad name had kissed her. Heather's face colored as she remembered that technically she'd kissed him. She was no virgin. There was a rawness to the exchange however. Desperation, she supposed, mixed with confused lust.

Confusion was the only answer. Edward Beck had just found out he was a widower. And there was no way he'd looked at her in any capacity besides a liaison before he'd found out.

People couldn't just forget years of marriage in three days.

She didn't want to think that he was the type of man who'd cheat. As soon as the idea surfaced she pushed it away, angry at herself for suggesting it.

He had shown her strength and trust. Sure, they'd both had their unscrupulous moments but for the most part they'd been good to one another. He still deserved her trust, even if he had locked her up.

An especially large pot hole blew Heather out of her thoughts. She looked around, realizing that they weren't far from town. The fastest way out to Mac's brought them only a few blocks away from downtown.

Mac slowed down when they hit the city limits and that's when the radio first crackled. " - - help - - - Major shot - - - need a medic - - - "

Both women looked down at the radio, staring at it. "Did you hear that? Did that sound like someone said the Major was shot and needed a medic?"

Heather wouldn't have been able to keep the panic out of her voice if her life depended on it.

Mac didn't say anything, instead tightening her grip on the steering wheel and pushing the jeep back up to speed. An SUV cut directly in front of them and she had to slam on the brakes and swerve to avoid hitting the vehicle. The jeep came to a stop.

The SUV's driver hopped out and ran over. It was Jimmy. Mac rolled down her window as the large deputy approached. He was out of breath.

"Hey, boy am I glad we found you Heather. Eric and Bill have been looking all over for ya."

"What's up Jimmy? Why the crazed driving?"

He looked at Mac, a slight smile on his face. "Sorry about that. Needed to stop you quick. Something happened out at the camp. We just got word that Major Beck was shot by an AS soldier. We're locking the town down. Their strategy guys said that there's a convoy headed this way about fifty miles out. We're getting people to the fall out shelters in case they start bombing."

Both Mac and Heather looked at Jimmy, astonished. He'd said more than three sentences and had managed to keep eye contact with them the whole time. The situation was serious.

"Where's the Major now Jimmy?"

He shrugged. "Radio call was from the camp, so I figure he's out there-"

"Drive Mac!"

Panic was giving way to frantic terror now. Mac put the car back in gear, but was stopped from driving off when Jimmy grabbed her door frame. "Guys, you should really get to a shelter. There's almost a thousand troops headed here and it's going to be less than an hour before the shit hits the fan."

Heather didn't even look at him, her eyes gazing ahead. Edward Beck, Major Beck, was in trouble. She'd be damned if she was going to hole up at a time like this, when he needed her.

Mac glanced at Heather and sighed. The younger woman was determined. And so was she. The safest place to be was going to be camp. Turning a brilliant smile to Jimmy she started to roll up the window. "Thanks for the warning. We need to go though."

He let go of the jeep real quick when Mac squealed away. The two women inside said nothing as they cleared the far edge of town and started down Route Nine, towards the camp.

They made it half way when the sound of helicopters distracted the both of them. Mac glanced at Heather and the younger woman was surprised to find real worry in the look. Mac had always been level headed and calm, even in the worst situations they'd seen since the bombs.

Mac pulled the jeep off the road, parking it in a shade of trees. "Why are we stopping? We're not that far from the camp."

Mac held up a hand to silence her before exiting the vehicle. She took a few steps outside, keeping to the tree line. Heather watched her friend a she paused, her eyes skyward. The helicopters were getting closer now.

Mac turned suddenly and darted back to the jeep. "Come on, we gotta go." She didn't allow any argument from Heather, instead reaching behind the driver's seat and pulling out a duffel bag and one of her many rifles.

They cleared the jeep and were fifty yards away, still under the cover of trees, when the military convoy passed their vehicle. Both Mac and Heather turned to watch. With a sigh, Mac pulled a pistol from her back pack. "Take it."

She handed the weapon to Heather who didn't really want to hold a gun. Even being raised in a small town in Middle America hadn't made her terribly excited about firearms. She took it however, the weight of it solid in her hand. "Just remember what I told you about the gun. It's just a 380, so you shouldn't have to worry about recoil too much."

Heather nodded and followed Mac as she turned towards the camp.

They walked for twenty minutes, coming up on the military camp from the north. The sight that greeted them chilled their blood. The AS military convoy had arrived, but had not entered the camp. Instead they were positioned around the outside, at least a hundred vehicles. Helicopters were landing a short distance away, releasing more squads of soldiers.

"Well, no way we're getting in there."

Heather chuckled at her own twisted humor before Mac silenced her. The older woman pulled her down, hiding them both in some shrubbery. They weren't too far from the AS line, only a hundred feet or so back. The fact that they'd managed to sneak this close was alarming. The AS military was definitely focused solely on the camp and it's inhabitants.

They both watched as one of the Major's company commanders, Captain Richards it looked like, exited the camp and approached a lead humvee. The familiar form of Colonel Hoffman exited the vehicle and both men stood, watching the other.

Heather gasped loudly as the colonel drew a gun and shot the Captain in the head, execution perfect. Mac slapped a hand over her mouth and pulled her head down.

Gunshots exploded around the camp, both from the inside and outside.

Heather supposed that if there was a beginning to this war, the moment they were stuck in the middle of this would be it. She was watching the first shots of the next American Civil War.

**To Be Continued**


End file.
